On Friday, former Pro Bowl safety Michael Lewis signed a 6-year deal with the 49ers, and he took the opportunity to point to some unnamed off-the-field issues with the Birds:
“A lot of things that went on in Philadelphia weren't football-related,” Lewis said. “That is the nature of the business, but I have something to prove. I want to get back to where my name needs to be as one of the top safeties in the league, as I feel I am.”
Of course, this tells us little about why exactly Lewis was upset, but from what I saw last season, a lot of what happened in Philly was entirely football related. Lewis inexplicably went from being a big-hitting fan favorite and perfect complement to Brian Dawkins to being the reincarnation of Izel “Toast” Jenkins. Sometime after that trip to Hawaii, he just flat out lost his ability to consistently cover deep threats, and he gave up some big plays at critical times last year. Lewis is probably pissed because he lost his starting job, which is understandable, but if you can’t keep Sean Considine off the field, you probably don’t deserve to start. He's definitely right about having something to prove, and he really may still have it in him to be a top safety, but it was time for him to go.
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Other free agent rumblings include Correll Buckhalter possibly signing with Denver (UPDATE: with the Broncos signing Travis Henry and dealing Tatum Bell, chatter surrounding Buck has quieted. Mike Bell is good enough for RB2 duties in Denver), and Rod Hood has drawn interest from the Giants. Donté Stallworth hasn't visited any teams yet, and it is believed that his asking price is too high to draw much interest before the market for WR is set.